United Nations
Educational, Scientic and
Cultural Organization
UNESCO’S STRATEGY
FOR HIV AND AIDS
UNESCO’S STRATEGY
FOR HIV AND AIDS
June 2011
Published by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
Education Sector, Division of Education for Peace and Sustainable Development
Section of Education and HIV & AIDS
7, place de Fontenoy, 75732 Paris 07 SP, France
Website: www.educaids.org
E-mail: [email protected]
© UNESCO 2011
All rights reserved
The designations employed and the presentation of material throughout this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the
part of UNESCO concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or
boundaries.
Designed and printed by UNESCO
ED-2011/WS/15
cld 825.11
CONTENTS
Acronyms
4
Foreword
5
1 UNESCO’s Goal and Strategic Priorities
6
2 Progress and Challenges
8
3 UNESCO’s Contribution
16
4 Implementing the Strategy
26
Annex 1: The UNAIDS Division of Labour
32
Annex 2: References
33
3
ACRONYMS
4
AIDS
Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome
ART
Antiretroviral Therapy
EDUCAIDS
UNAIDS Global Initiative on Education and HIV & AIDS
EFA
Education for All
FRESH
Focusing Resources on Effective School Health
HIV
Human Immunodeficiency Virus
IATT
Inter-Agency Task Team
IBE
International Bureau of Education
IIEP
International Institute for Educational Planning
ILO
International Labour Organization
MDG
Millennium Development Goal
MSM
Men who have sex with men
SADC
Southern Africa Development Community
TTISSA
Teacher Training Initiative for Sub-Saharan Africa
UBRAF
Unified Budget, Results and Accountability Framework
UN
United Nations
UNAIDS
Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS
UNESCO
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
UNFPA
United Nations Population Fund
UNGASS
United Nations General Assembly Special Session on HIV/AIDS
UNICEF
United Nations Children’s Fund
UNODC
United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime
WFP
World Food Programme
WHO
World Health Organization
FOREWORD
There has been considerable progress across the
world in responding to HIV and AIDS. Yet, the number
of people newly infected with HIV continues to rise
in many countries, and AIDS is still a leading cause of
adult mortality. Treatment has become more widely
available, but the costs for individuals and countries
remain significant, and the sustainability of treatment
is a serious concern.
This situation calls for sharper efforts to reverse the
epidemic and to ensure that all those in need receive
treatment and care. The stakes are high. If we fail
to respond effectively to HIV and AIDS, we will fall
far short of the Education for All objectives and the
Millennium Development Goals. We will fail to meet
our collective commitment to promoting human
rights, gender equality and social justice.
UNESCO is fully engaged with meeting this
challenge. Responding to HIV and AIDS has been
and remains a high priority for action throughout all
of our work, from Headquarters and in the field. HIV
prevention lies at the heart of our efforts – to reduce
the number of people newly infected with HIV and
the human and financial costs of the epidemic.
All parts of the Organization are mobilized, working
at the global, regional and country levels, through
activities that are culturally appropriate, gender
transformative and evidence-based. This crossdisciplinary approach is our signature strength, and it
is well-suited for tackling HIV and AIDS.
This new UNESCO Strategy for HIV and AIDS builds
on longstanding experience, and has been updated
to reflect the need to accelerate Universal Access to
HIV prevention, treatment, care and support and to
adapt to an evolving epidemic and a changing global
environment. This is our overarching goal. It is aligned
with our action on gender equality and in Africa, and
built into our overall Medium Term Strategy.
With this goal in mind, UNESCO will structure its work
around three strategic priorities – to build country
capacity for effective and sustainable education
responses to HIV, to strengthen comprehensive
HIV and sexuality education, and to advance gender
equality and protect human rights. Drawing on
the Organization’s unique mandate in education,
the sciences, culture and communication, these
priorities will guide our contribution to UNAIDS
Strategy and Outcome Framework 2011-2015, in
line with UNESCO’s role within the revised UNAIDS
Division of Labour.
Our goals are clear. We will provide greater emphasis
to HIV prevention in the context of wider health
promotion. We will seek to ensure that all girls and
boys, young women and men, in and out of formal
education, have access to comprehensive HIV
education. We will strengthen the implementation
and monitoring of education responses, and we
will tackle the gender and human rights issues that
hinder effective responses to HIV and AIDS.
We will continue to mobilise resources for our action
through our regular budget and from extra-budgetary
sources – such as the UNAIDS Unified Budget,
Results and Accountability Framework and the
private sector. We will seek also to build on these,
by diversifying funding sources and by identifying
additional resources across all sectors and at all
levels of the Organization.
The result of an extensive consultative process, this
Strategy reflects UNESCO’s united and targeted
vision of how we will contribute most to prevent
the further spread of HIV, to protect individuals,
families and societies from the impact of AIDS, and
to advance human rights and dignity for all.
Irina Bokova,
Director-General
5
1
UNESCO’S GOAL AND
STRATEGI C PRIORITIES
Goal
The overarching goal of the UNESCO Strategy for HIV and AIDS is Universal Access to HIV prevention,
treatment, care and support.
UNESCO and Universal Access
UNESCO’s goal of Universal Access is in line with UN-wide policy as adopted by the UN General Assembly Special
Session on HIV/AIDS (UNGASS) in 2001 and reaffirmed at the General Assembly’s High Level Meeting in 2006.
Universal Access is critical to achieve the HIV target for MDG 6, which is to halt and reverse the spread of HIV
by 2015. Achievement of the MDGs on education (MDG 2), maternal and child health (MDG 4 and MDG 5), poverty
(MDG 1) and environmental sustainability (MDG 7) also depends on successful HIV prevention, treatment and
mitigation.
The Outcome Statement of the September 2010 MDG Summit highlights ‘redoubling efforts to achieve Universal
Access to HIV prevention, treatment, care and support services as an essential step in achieving MDG 6 and as a
contribution to reaching the other MDGs’.
6
Universal Access is critical to achieve the
HIV target for MDG 6, which is to halt
and reverse the spread of HIV by 2015.
Achievement of the MDGs on education
(MDG 2), maternal and child health
(MDG 4 and MDG 5), poverty (MDG 1) and
environmental sustainability (MDG 7) also
depends on successful HIV prevention,
treatment and mitigation.
Strategic Priorities
To achieve its goal and address the challenges outlined in Section 2, UNESCO will structure its work in the
coming years around the following strategic priorities:
▪ Build country capacity for effective and sustainable education responses to HIV.
▪ Strengthen comprehensive HIV and sexuality education.
▪ Advance gender equality and protect human rights.
UNESCO will take forward this strategy as a UNAIDS cosponsor and through its core functions of leadership
and advocacy, policy and programmatic guidance, technical support, strategic information, convening and
coordination. The strategy will be implemented through the collective actions of UNESCO’s sectors, institutes,
regional bureaux and field offices and in collaboration with a range of partners.
7
2
PROGRESS
AND CHALLENGES
HIV and AIDS
In the last decade, the HIV response has been
transformed by increased political commitment
and a dramatic increase in resources. Increased
commitment is reflected in the 2001 UN General
Assembly Declaration of Commitment on HIV/AIDS,
the 2006 Political Declaration, and commitments to
the Millennium Development Goals and to Universal
Access to HIV prevention, treatment, care and
support.
Global and country action is making a difference.
In 33 countries, including 22 in sub-Saharan Africa,
new infections fell by over 25% between 2001
and 2009. Improved access to services to prevent
mother-to-child transmission has reduced the
number of infants infected with HIV from 500,000
in 2001 to 370,000 in 2009. New interventions and
emerging technologies, including male circumcision,
microbicides and pre-exposure prophylaxis, have the
potential to further enhance HIV prevention efforts,
if implemented at sufficient scale.
Treatment access has expanded significantly,
and 5.2 million people in low- and middle-income
countries now receive antiretroviral therapy (ART).
This has contributed to a decrease in AIDS-related
deaths, from 2.2 million in 2004 to 1.8 million in 2009.1
Efforts are underway to simplify the way treatment
is provided and bring down treatment costs in order
to accelerate scale-up of access to ART. There is also
growing evidence that increasing the availability of
treatment can contribute to HIV prevention.
However, major challenges remain. Globally,
33.3 million people are living with HIV, including
2.5 million children. An estimated 2.6 million people
were newly infected with HIV in 2009. Sub-Saharan
Africa, with an estimated 68% of all people living
with HIV, remains the most severely affected region,
but HIV incidence is increasing in some countries,
notably in Eastern Europe and Central Asia. Young
people aged 15-24 represent 40% of new infections,
and many young people still lack access to the
1
8
UNAIDS 2010 Global AIDS Report
UNESCO’s contribution focuses on
the pivotal role of education in the
response to HIV and in achieving
Universal Access. This includes
learning in formal educational
settings, non-formal educational
activities, and informal education and
communication through mass media
and community channels.
information, skills and services required to prevent
HIV infection. Young women are especially vulnerable
to HIV in sub-Saharan Africa.
New infections continue to outpace the scale-up of
treatment – for every person who starts treatment,
two are newly infected with HIV – and 10 million
people who need treatment do not have access to
ART. The number of children orphaned as a result of
HIV continues to increase.
There is a need to improve and scale up HIV
prevention, including access to new and proven
prevention interventions, and to provide simpler and
less costly treatment if countries are to meet their
Universal Access targets. As of 2010, four in five lowand middle-income countries were not on track to
meet these targets.2 At the same time, countries’
ability to expand prevention, treatment, care and
support is threatened by declining investment in HIV,
in part as a result of the global economic downturn
2
Progress in implementation of the Declaration of Commitment and Political
Declaration, Report of the Secretary-General 1 April 2010
and in part because of shifting donor and national
priorities.
HIV epidemics are diversifying and becoming more
complex, as new epidemiological patterns emerge.
Sexual transmission is growing in significance
in Eastern Europe and Central Asia, where the
epidemic has until recently been largely concentrated
among people who inject drugs. In sub-Saharan
Africa, where heterosexual transmission has been
predominant, there is evidence of elevated HIV risk
among men who have sex with men (MSM) and
people who inject drugs. Sex work remains central
to epidemics in a number of countries in Asia and
sub-Saharan Africa, and the overlap between sex
work and injecting drug use is a major factor in
HIV transmission in the worst affected countries of
Eastern Europe and Central Asia.
Better evidence is critical to ensure that national
responses adapt to changing epidemic priorities. UN
and other development partners also need to adapt,
to provide effective support for region- and country-
9
specific responses. The “Know Your Epidemic,
Know Your Response” approach, which UNAIDS is
promoting and UNESCO supports, aims to assist
countries to gain a better understanding of their
epidemics and to tailor their responses accordingly,
as well as to ensure that UN and other development
partners provide appropriate support.
Stronger political commitment and leadership are
also critical since many of the barriers to tackling
the epidemic are political, social and cultural. Stigma
and discrimination, gender inequality and genderbased violence, and punitive and counter-productive
laws continue to impede effective HIV responses.
Greater efforts must be made to reduce stigma
and discrimination, protect human rights, advance
gender equality and promote the involvement of
those most affected by HIV.
The role of education in the HIV response
As the UN specialised agency for education, UNESCO’s contribution focuses on the pivotal role of education in the
response to HIV and in achieving Universal Access. This includes learning in formal educational settings, nonformal educational activities, and informal education and communication through mass media and community
channels. But UNESCO also recognises that education alone cannot bring about the changes needed to reverse
and halt the epidemic. Education must be complemented by efforts to address the social and cultural factors that
influence people’s ability to make healthy choices and adopt safe behaviours and action across all sectors of
society.
Education is central to preparing young people for
adult life and offers important protection against HIV.
The Global Campaign for Education has estimated
that universal primary education alone would
prevent 700,000 new HIV infections each year. The
achievement of Education for All (EFA) is therefore
fundamental to reduce HIV-related vulnerability
and risk. UNESCO and its partners are working
with countries to achieve EFA. There has been
good progress – 47 of 163 countries have achieved
universal primary education and 20 countries are
on track to achieve this by 2015.3 The number of
primary school age children not in school has fallen
by 33 million, but in 2007 at least 72 million were still
not in school. Moreover, despite improvements in
girls’ enrolment, 24 countries are unlikely to achieve
gender parity at primary or secondary level by 2015.
3
EFA Global Monitoring Report 2010
The importance of education was affirmed by the 2010 Millennium Summit, which concluded that ‘Ensuring
children’s access to school is an important aspect of HIV prevention, as higher levels of education are associated
with safer sexual behaviour, delayed sexual debut and overall reduction in girls’ vulnerability to HIV’.
Education can:
▪ Provide children and young people with the
knowledge and skills they need to make safer
and healthier choices.
▪ Contribute to delay in sexual debut and reduce
risk behaviour among those who are already
sexually active.
▪ Promote awareness of the risks of alcohol and
drug use, in particular the HIV risk associated
with unsafe injecting drug use.
▪ Provide young MSM with the knowledge and
skills they need to make safe and healthy choices
about sex.
10
▪ Address the social and structural factors that
facilitate the spread of HIV, including lack of
opportunity and gender inequality.
▪ Reduce the vulnerability of girls to HIV by improving
their self-esteem and economic prospects. The
higher the level of education the greater the
benefits – girls who complete secondary school
have a lower risk of HIV infection and are more
likely to practise safer sex.
▪ Promote understanding and tolerance and reduce
stigma and discrimination towards people living
with HIV as well as marginalised and most-at-risk
populations.
At the same time, there is growing recognition that
EFA cannot be achieved without addressing HIV and
AIDS. HIV keeps children out of school and has an
adverse effect on learning. The EFA Global Monitoring
Report 2010 highlighted children most at risk of
educational marginalisation. These include children
who are living with HIV, who have been orphaned
and who live in households affected by HIV.
Consolidating and building on gains in school
enrolment and girls’ education, as an essential
building block of the HIV response, must remain a
priority, but there is more to be done to maximise
the effectiveness of education responses to HIV.
Strengthening the education response
While many countries have developed education
sector HIV and AIDS policies and strategies,
available evidence suggests that progress with
implementation has been limited:
▪ A recent evaluation of EDUCAIDS, the UNAIDS
Global Initiative on Education and HIV and
AIDS, highlighted the need to mainstream HIV
in education policies and programmes and to
address implementation bottlenecks.
▪ A joint SADC, UNESCO and UNICEF review in
the Southern Africa Development Community
region found that national education sector HIV
policies and strategies exist but implementation
has been weak due to lack of leadership, capacity
and resources.
▪ A UNAIDS Inter-Agency Task Team (IATT) on
Education review of lessons learned identified
similar
challenges,
recommending
more
support for implementation, as well as closer
monitoring and evaluation, of education sector
HIV responses.
Greater support for countries to address the
implementation gap, and in particular to build the
capacity of the education sector to deliver on policies
and strategies at all levels, is essential. Countries
worst affected by HIV also need support to address
the impact of the epidemic on the education sector.
HIV and AIDS account for up to 77% of teacher
shortage in countries with high rates of HIV.4
Concerted efforts are also required to increase
the coverage, quality and scope of HIV education,
in order to maximise its potential impact on the
epidemic.
Globally, while knowledge about HIV and safer
sexual behaviour among young people has improved,
only 34% of young people have comprehensive
and accurate knowledge of HIV.5 Coverage must
be expanded to ensure that all children and young
4
5
people have access to accurate information and high
quality HIV education to enable them to develop the
requisite knowledge, attitudes and skills before they
reach an age where some of them might engage in
risk taking behaviours.
This includes improving access to HIV information
and promoting behaviour change for children and
young people who are not in school and through nonformal education programmes. Use of new media
and technologies, including the internet, provides an
important opportunity to reach and influence young
people, in particular those who are not in formal
education. UNESCO can draw on the combined
expertise of its Education and Communication and
Information Sectors to maximise the potential of
new media and technologies.
Coverage with HIV education in secondary schools
has improved, but coverage with age-appropriate
education in primary schools is less consistent. The
needs of students in tertiary education, including
teacher training institutions, have been poorly
addressed. UNESCO-commissioned studies of HIVrelated knowledge and risk behaviour at training
colleges in Zambia and Ethiopia in 2008 found that
misinformation and misconceptions about HIV were
common among students and that transactional sex,
multiple sexual partnerships, sexual exploitation of
female students and sexual relationships between
staff and students placed students at high risk of
HIV infection. Support to plan and implement HIV
interventions in tertiary educational institutions is
critical.
In many countries there is also a gap between
knowledge and practice and some young people
who do have accurate information about HIV engage
in risk behaviours. Education responses also need to
address the factors that contribute to this, including
peer pressure, youth culture and low risk perception.
UNESCO. Education counts towards the Millennium Development Goals.
2010.
UNAIDS 2010 Report on the Global AIDS Epidemic.
11
Promoting comprehensive HIV and sexuality education
Well planned and delivered HIV and sexuality
education increases knowledge, develops skills,
generates positive attitudes and can modify or
reduce risk taking behaviour.
But poor quality curricula, lack of properly trained
teachers and inappropriate teaching methods and
learning materials, among other factors, limit the
effectiveness of HIV education. HIV education that
focuses on providing information and uses traditional
teaching methods often fails to engage young people
and to address attitudes, skills and behaviours. A
study conducted by the Southern and East Africa
Consortium for Monitoring Educational Quality
(SACMEQ) (see below) concluded that there is an
urgent need to improve delivery of HIV prevention
education in schools.
Delivery of HIV Education … Room for Improvement
The SACMEQ III Project 2007-2010 involved 15 education ministries, 2,779 schools, 8,045 teachers and 61,421 pupils
in Grade 6 (average age 13.5 years) in East and Southern Africa. Teachers and pupils were tested on their knowledge
of HIV and AIDS. Respondents were categorised as having ‘minimal’ knowledge if they had mastered at least 50%
of the official curriculum and ‘desirable’ knowledge if they had mastered at least 75%. In most countries, only 2040% of pupils had minimal knowledge and less than 10% had desirable knowledge. Almost all teachers had minimal
knowledge and 80-95% in most countries had desirable knowledge. These findings, which highlight the difference
in knowledge among teachers and pupils, underscore the urgent need to improve delivery of HIV education in
schools.
Effective HIV and sexuality education requires
highly skilled and motivated staff. Teachers need
appropriate training, skills in the use of participatory
methods, and ongoing support. More attention
must be paid to ensuring that pre-service training
provides teachers with the requisite knowledge and
skills and to assessing how teachers are delivering
HIV education and addressing the reasons for poor
delivery.
Children and young people need good quality HIV
education in all epidemic settings. In practice,
however, school curricula often consider HIV in
isolation, and prevention education focuses on
heterosexual transmission of HIV with little reference
to other risk behaviours. Education on HIV and drug
prevention programmes are not always integrated.
When they are, HIV prevention does not always
address harm reduction, which is viewed by some
as encouraging drug use among young people,
leaving young injecting drug users exposed to HIV
transmission. Legal restrictions often deny access to
services for young people who already use drugs.
UNESCO Support for HIV and Drugs Education
Many drug users, including injecting drug users, are young people. The average age for the first use of heroin or
other drugs is below 24 years in most settings, and studies show that the average age for the first use of injection is
decreasing. UNESCO’s work on HIV and drugs, as a key component of comprehensive HIV education, focuses on:
▪ Educating young people before they may start using drugs to equip them with information and skills to help
them make safer and less harmful choices.
▪ Educating young people who use drugs but do not inject them about the risks related to drug use in general
and injecting drug use in particular, and informing them about harm reduction strategies in case they start to
inject drugs.
▪ Informing young injecting drug users about harm reduction strategies and facilitating their access to harm
reduction services and ART for those who are living with HIV.
UNESCO has already been supporting key interventions in these areas in regions where the main route of
transmission is injecting drug use, including Asia Pacific, Eastern Europe and Central Asia.
12
A fundamental shift is also required to ensure
that HIV education is incorporated within wider
sexuality education and health promotion. This
should ensure that HIV education addresses issues
such as relationships, trust, peer pressure, power
disparities, gender norms and gender inequality,
pregnancy, other sexually transmitted infections,
same sex relationships, drug use and social norms
that increase HIV risk and vulnerability, as well as
stigma and discrimination associated with HIV and
with those who engage in risk behaviours.
Latin American and Caribbean Commitment to Comprehensive Sexuality
Education
In August 2008, health and education ministers from Latin America and the Caribbean signed an historic declaration
in Mexico City. The Ministerial Declaration provides a mandate for school-based sexuality and HIV education in the
region, calling for comprehensive sexuality education to encompass human rights, ethical, biological, emotional,
cultural and gender aspects and respect for diversity of sexual orientations and identities and to be a core area of
instruction in primary and secondary schools.
Comprehensive HIV and sexuality education is priority
for UNESCO and the UN. This is strongly reflected in
the UNAIDS Strategy and the Outcome Framework
priority area of empowering young people to protect
themselves from HIV6, which includes the goal of
addressing comprehensive knowledge about HIV,
particularly through sexuality education, and the
recent evaluation of EDUCAIDS, which highlighted
the need for a stronger emphasis on human rights and
gender issues in education sector responses.7 It is
also reflected in the UNAIDS Agenda for Accelerated
Country Action for Women, Girls, Gender Equality
and HIV, which advocates for and supports access to
country-level comprehensive sexuality education that
promotes gender equality and human rights.
The 2010 report of the UN Special Rapporteur on the
right to education also focused on comprehensive
sexuality education as a means to realising other
human rights and highlighted the importance of
comprehensive sexuality education in view of the
threat of HIV. The report also emphasised the need
for sexuality education to be framed within a solid
gender and diversity perspective.
6
7
UNAIDS Outcome Framework Business Case Empowering Young People
to Protect Themselves from HIV (Draft March 2010). The goal of this priority
area of the Outcome Framework is to: by 2015 reduce new HIV infections
among young people (15-24) by 30% by providing comprehensive sexual
and reproductive information, skills, services and commodities in a safe and
enabling environment tailored to the specific country and epidemic context.
UNESCO et al (2009). International Technical Guidance on Sexuality
Education: An Evidence-informed Approach for Schools, Teachers and Health
Educators.
13
Addressing gender equality and human rights
Effective responses to HIV and AIDS require greater
efforts to promote gender equality and human rights
and to tackle stigma and discrimination, both through
education and more widely. More specifically, greater
attention must be given to promoting tolerance
of cultural and sexual diversity, positive attitudes
towards people living with HIV and the specific
rights and needs of children and young people who
are living with HIV.
Gender equality is one of UNESCO’s two global priorities for 2008-2013 and the Gender Equality Action Plan
has been approved by UNESCO’s Executive Board. Gender equality is central to all areas of UNESCO’s work,
including its work on HIV and AIDS.
Action to address gender and human rights issues
needs to take account of the way in which culture
influences people’s understandings of health,
behaviours, relationships and individual and social
choices. Culturally appropriate approaches can
engage individuals and communities to catalyse
change, including changes in gender norms and
attitudes towards people living with HIV. Cultural
diversity means, however, that there is no ‘one
size fits all’ approach, and culturally-appropriate
approaches should reflect internationally agreed
principles of respecting and promoting cultural
diversity.
Women and girls and HIV
▪ The HIV epidemic has taken a devastating toll on the lives of young women, who account for 66% of infections
among young people worldwide.
▪ HIV is the leading cause of death and disease among women of reproductive age (15-49 years) worldwide.
▪ In nearly all countries in sub-Saharan Africa and certain Caribbean countries, the majority of people living with
HIV are women, especially girls and women aged 15-24 years.
▪ One half of people living with HIV globally are women and 76% of all HIV-positive women live in sub-Saharan
Africa.
▪ Women living with HIV are more likely to experience violence due to their HIV status.
Source: Fact sheet on women, girls, HIV and education prepared by UNESCO for the 2011 Commission on the Status of Women.
Gender inequality and gender-based violence8 affect
National responses must, therefore, be gender
the educational and economic prospects of women
transformative, empowering women and girls and
and girls and increase their HIV risk and vulnerability.
working with men and boys to address harmful
Efforts to promote gender equality, reduce gendergender norms and to change attitudes and practices
based violence, and realise
that increase HIV risk and
the rights of women and
vulnerability of both sexes.
Gender inequality and
girls are central to the HIV
gender-based violence affect the National responses must
response, especially in
countries where women educational and economic prospects also be based on human
rights
principles
and
are
disproportionately
standards.
Despite
the
of
women
and
girls
and
increase
affected by HIV and
existence
of
protective
laws
AIDS. Gender norms and
their HIV risk and vulnerability and policies, discriminatory
expectations about male
practices persist, including the exclusion of children
behaviour reinforce gender inequality but also
living with HIV from school, and HIV-positive children
increase the HIV risk and vulnerability of men and
and young people continue to experience stigma
boys. And in regions where the epidemic is driven by
and discrimination from teachers and their peers. In
unsafe sex between men and unsafe injecting drug
a recent UNESCO study of the educational needs
use, men are disproportionately affected by HIV.
of learners living with HIV, every HIV-positive child
reported negative consequences of others knowing
8
See http://data.unaids.org/pub/FactSheet/2010/20100302_fs_womenhiv_
en.pdf
14
their HIV status. Greater efforts are required to
eliminate stigma and discrimination in educational
settings, including enforcing laws and policies that
protect learners and educators from discrimination
and mobilising the wider society. Empowering youth
and student associations through peer initiatives and
enabling local policy-makers to adequately respond
to challenges at the municipal level are important
entry points.
The education response must also adapt to meet
the needs of the 2.5 million children and young
people worldwide who are living with HIV. HIVpositive children and young people have specific HIV
prevention, treatment, care and support needs. As
they grow older, young people living with HIV need
information to enable them to make safe and healthy
choices about relationships, sex and reproduction, but
this is not consistently addressed in HIV prevention
education. HIV education also needs to incorporate
treatment issues, so that young people know about
HIV counselling and testing and understand the
importance of treatment adherence and continued
protective behaviours.
Comprehensive HIV and sexuality education can
be an entry point for a healthy school approach and
wider health promotion efforts. Health promotion
and school health can also be an entry point for
HIV education. Educational settings can contribute
to improving health as well as to protecting human
rights, advancing gender equality and tackling stigma
and discrimination. Efforts to promote school health
and to integrate health promotion within education
must be stepped up.
Schools have also demonstrated that they can play
an important role in care and support for infected
and affected children and young people, especially
those who lack family support. But lessons learned
need to be applied more widely and schools need to
develop stronger links with health and social welfare
services. Non-formal education and educational
efforts outside the classroom also continue to
provide an important context for expanding access
to good quality educational opportunities on HIV
prevention for young people.
The education response must also
adapt to meet the needs of the
2.5 million children and young
people worldwide who are living
with HIV.
HIV-positive children and young
people have specific HIV prevention,
treatment, care and support needs.
As they grow older, young people
living with HIV need information
to enable them to make safe and
healthy choices about relationships,
sex and reproduction…
15
3
UNESCO’S
CONTRIBUTION
UNESCO contributes to the HIV response through the collective actions
of its sectors, institutes, regional bureaux and field offices and in
collaboration with a range of partners. Partnerships, with UNAIDS and
UN agencies, multilateral and bilateral donors, national governments,
international and national civil society organisations, and the private
sector, are central to UNESCO’s work on HIV and AIDS.
16
UNESCO’s principles
UNESCO’s work on HIV and AIDS is guided by the following principles:
▪ Human rights – UNESCO is guided by international human rights principles and standards. UNESCO takes a
human rights-based approach that emphasises equality, non-discrimination, participation and accountability,
and works to reduce stigma and discrimination, promote tolerance and uphold the rights of people affected by
HIV and of those who are particularly vulnerable to HIV.
▪ Gender equality – UNESCO supports gender-transformative programming that advances gender equality and
addresses gender roles, cultural norms and power structures which increase the vulnerability of women and
men to HIV.
▪ Country ownership – UNESCO is committed to the principles of national ownership, harmonisation and
alignment, in line with the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness and the UNAIDS Strategy 2011-2015. UNESCO
will continue to work with country partners, to align action with national priorities, plans and processes, and
to support the ‘Three Ones’ – one national plan, one national coordinating authority and one national M&E
framework for HIV and AIDS.
▪ Evidence – UNESCO supports approaches that are scientifically accurate and grounded in evidence, and the
Know Your Epidemic, Know Your Response approach. UNESCO will continue to generate strategic information,
encourage innovation and support countries to implement proven and evidence-informed HIV responses that
are appropriate to the epidemic context.
▪ Involvement and inclusion – UNESCO promotes the involvement of all sectors of society, including civil society,
the media, the private sector, most-at-risk populations, and people living with and affected by HIV. UNESCO is
committed to Greater Involvement of People Living with HIV and the framework for Positive Health, Dignity and
Prevention, which emphasise the rights and responsibilities of people living with HIV and their leadership role
in prevention and treatment and in addressing legal and policy barriers.
▪ Cultural appropriateness – Culture influences people’s understanding of health, relationships, beliefs,
behaviours and the way they understand HIV and AIDS. UNESCO promotes culturally appropriate approaches
to HIV that are relevant to the local context and draw on communities’ cultural resources. Respect for local
culture is essential to meaningful participation of affected populations, and participation is essential to ensure
that interventions are culturally appropriate. Culturally appropriate education can also challenge harmful
traditional practices and help to develop alternative and safer practices.
▪ Participation of young people – Young people need knowledge, skills and a supportive environment to make
safe, healthy choices in their lives. UNESCO targets actions to meet the needs of young people and works
with organisations of young people and initiatives that promote young people’s involvement in HIV policy and
programmes. Participation focuses on young people who are most at risk and young people living with HIV,
including support for them to address stigma and discrimination.
17
Collective action within UNESCO
All of UNESCO’s sectors contribute to the HIV response, through sector-specific strategies and collaboration
across sectors.
UNESCO’s work across sectors is coordinated through the Intersectoral Platform on HIV and AIDS, which will
be further strengthened in 2012-2013, and is overseen by the UNESCO Global Coordinator for HIV and AIDS
with support from the UNESCO Focal Point on HIV and AIDS. In 2010, the Intersectoral Platform produced a
practical guide on the essential characteristics of effective HIV prevention, with contributions from UNESCO’s
Communication and Information, Culture, Education, Natural Science and Social and Human Sciences Sectors
and the Division for Gender Equality.
The roles of each sector are:
▪ Communication and Information Sector –
supports the capacity of media, communication
and information professionals and institutions
to strengthen professional journalistic reporting
standards and access to credible, scientifically
accurate information on HIV and AIDS, and to
develop interactive multi-media tools and youthfriendly material.
▪ Culture Sector – promotes culture and
intercultural dialogue as conditions and assets
for successful HIV responses grounded in
the principles of respect for human dignity,
cultural diversity and participation in policy and
programming.
▪ Division for Gender Equality, Office of the
Director-General – supports the integration of
a gender equality perspective into all stages of
the programme cycle, from conceptualisation to
evaluation. The Division builds relevant capacity,
seeks to ensure UNESCO’s participation in interagency efforts around gender and HIV-related
work and provides policy advice to Member
States including on gender equality and HIV and
AIDS.
▪ Education Sector – supports comprehensive
education sector responses to HIV and AIDS,
with a particular focus on HIV prevention with
young people, including through EDUCAIDS
and the UNAIDS IATT on Education.
18
In 2010, the Intersectoral
Platform produced a practical guide
on the essential characteristics
of effective HIV prevention, with
contributions from UNESCO’s
Communication and Information,
Culture, Education, Natural Science
and Social and Human Sciences
Sectors and the Division for Gender
Equality.
▪ Natural Science Sector – promotes accurate
and up-to-date scientific content, supports
institutions of higher learning to integrate HIV
and AIDS in their scientific programmes and
promotes research capacity-building for young
scientists.
▪ Social and Human Sciences Sector – supports
policy-oriented research and the development of
policy recommendations for municipal authorities
and seeks to empower young people to address
HIV-related discrimination and human rights and
the structural causes of vulnerability.
UNESCO Sectors Implement a Range of HIV and AIDS Programmes
and Projects
The Communication and Information Sector provides
technical support to broadcast and media training
institutions, university departments and libraries. It
supports local content creation through regional peer
review workshops and training for young TV producers,
facilitates free distribution of quality TV items among
broadcasters, and promotes quality professional
reporting and networking between broadcasters and
national AIDS preventions institutions. It also advocates
for the use of new information technologies and open
educational resources to strengthen HIV prevention
efforts and prevent stigma and discrimination.
Resources developed include a Model Curriculum
for Journalism Education adopted by 57 training
institutes in 45 countries, a Handbook for TV Trainers
and Producers on HIV and AIDS and an interactive
computer game. The sector also works in partnership
with the media. For example, the Asia-Pacific Institute
for Broadcasting Development (AIBD) has developed a
broadcasters training module on HIV and AIDS, which
is being used to train TV producers and trainers among
its 26 members and 70 affiliates as well as broadcasting
unions and associations in the Africa and Asia-Pacific
regions. The Sector also supports national, local and
school media capacity-building for public sensitisation
on HIV and AIDS, behaviour change communication
for HIV prevention among young people and reduction
of HIV-related stigma and discrimination in Central
Asian countries and the Russian Federation.
The Culture Sector conducts research on cultural
aspects of HIV and AIDS, supports efforts to
mainstream culturally-appropriate approaches in
national HIV policy and programming and disseminates
information on socio-cultural issues – for example,
how HIV affects migrant women and the role of
religious leaders in fighting stigma and discrimination.
The Sector also promotes the use of arts and creativity
in HIV programmes and supports the development of
culturally appropriate materials and programmes. This
has included a series of toolkits and theatre manuals
on using arts and creativity to address HIV-related
discrimination, and radio programmes on HIV, drugs
and trafficking for ethnic minority communities in the
Greater Mekong region.
The Division for Gender Equality has developed a series
of issues papers that seek to improve understanding
of structural issues affecting women’s and girls’
vulnerability to HIV and a gendered response. In 2009,
the Division for Gender Equality and the Culture Sector,
in collaboration with the Social Science Research
Council, published the online version of The Fourth
Wave: Violence, Gender, Culture and HIV in the 21st
Century, a publication which addresses the social,
cultural and economic factors that are driving the
epidemic.
The Education Sector is providing a range of support
for comprehensive education sector responses to HIV
and AIDS in 80 countries. In Pakistan, for example,
UNESCO is supporting the Ministry of Education
to include HIV and AIDS education in the National
Education Policy, as well as advocating with policymakers and curriculum developers for the integration
of HIV prevention education in school curricula. This
work is part of the Joint UN Programme on Health
and Population and is being undertaken by UNESCO
in partnership with UNICEF, UNFPA and WHO. In
Kazakhstan, UNESCO has supported the Ministry of
Education and Science and the national in-service
teacher training institute to develop resources on
HIV prevention education for teachers. Some of these
materials have been adapted for teachers in the
neighbouring countries of Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and
Uzbekistan and an e-course using these materials is
currently in development. And in Vietnam, UNESCO
has been working with other UNAIDS cosponsors to
strengthen the Ministry of Education and Training,
support strategic planning and inclusion of HIV and
sexuality education in national strategy documents
as well as monitoring and evaluation of HIV and AIDS
education, and advocate for inclusion of HIV prevention
in the education sector.
In East and Southern Africa, support is being provided
to 17 countries through two specific programmes.
▪ The UNESCO-OPEC Fund for International
Development programme aims to: enhance the
evidence base on education and HIV; develop
partnerships for action at global, regional and
national level; support intensified implementation
of education sector responses at country level; and
deliver high quality technical support to countries.
Following rapid assessments, action is being taken
to strengthen mainstreaming of HIV and AIDS within
broader education sector policies and strategies,
improve monitoring and evaluation of the education
sector’s effectiveness and strengthen sexuality
education in HIV education programmes.
▪ The Virginio Bruni Tedeschi Foundation funds the
Building Knowledge, Skills and Hope: HIV and
AIDS Education for African Children programme
19
in Angola, Lesotho, Namibia and Swaziland. The
programme aims to increase the coverage and
quality of HIV education, improve the availability
of technical support, and enhance partnerships
and lessons learned. By early 2011, it had reached
4,024 schools, 17,236 teachers and 453,913 learners
with activities including teacher training and
psychosocial support for educators and learners
living with HIV.
The Natural Science Sector works in collaboration
with the UNESCO Regional Bureau for Science and
Technology in Africa to mainstream HIV into university
curricula, focusing on science and engineering
faculties, and to eliminate stigma and discrimination
in universities. Over 150 university lecturers have been
trained and a generic HIV integration course module
has been developed for universities in sub-Saharan
Africa in addition to national integration course
modules for Botswana, Ghana, Kenya and Rwanda.
The sector also supports Advanced Summer Schools
in Africa to build research capacity and promote
collaboration between young research scientists in
UNESCO’s International Institute for Educational
Planning (IIEP) and International Bureau of Education
(IBE) make an important contribution, through
technical assistance, capacity-building, support
for development of HIV curricula, analysis of good
practice and development of practical guidance,
as well as through the UNESCO HIV and AIDS
Education Clearinghouse.
Africa and other regions. Future work will continue
to focus on building capacity in virology, immunology
and genetics, disseminating advances in HIV research
and mainstreaming HIV within university programmes,
and support for youth organisations in Small Island
Developing States.
The Social and Human Sciences Sector has worked
through the UNESCO Bangkok and Namibia Offices
to build the capacity of municipal authorities to
address stigma and discrimination. Several hundred
municipalities were involved in workshops held
in the Philippines, Thailand, Sri Lanka and Papua
New Guinea. Policy reviews are being conducted in
Namibia and South Africa to inform the design and
implementation of advocacy strategies targeting
municipalities and other local actors. The Sector has
also encouraged peer-to-peer initiatives to empower
young people to address stigma and discrimination
through the UNESCO Lima, Moscow and Quito Offices.
Methodologies and workshops are being developed
and used in Belarus, Moldova, Ecuador, Bolivia and
Peru.
The IIEP focuses on education planning in the
context of HIV and on analysis of the impact of the
epidemic on education systems and has developed
a series of training modules for education ministries
on integrating HIV into education planning. The IBE
focuses on technical assistance to Member States
and capacity development on curricula for primary
and secondary education and teacher training (preservice and in-service).
UNESCO’s HIV and AIDS Education Clearinghouse
The HIV and AIDS Education Clearinghouse provides
support to ministries of education, education
professionals, development agencies, civil society
organisations, researchers and UNESCO field staff,
through a comprehensive website and database in
English, French, Spanish and Portuguese, a virtual
library with over 6,000 references, a monthly
electronic newsletter, and an enquiry and literature
search service. The Clearinghouse was established
in December 2008 to bring together existing
UNESCO HIV and AIDS resource centres, and is a
collaboration of IIEP, IBE and UNESCO’s regional and
cluster bureaux and offices. Recent activities have
included hosting a web forum on HIV and teachers.
20
UNESCO also produces technical guidance and
practical resources. Recent examples include
international technical guidance on sexuality
education, EDUCAIDS tools, case studies on
overcoming barriers to implementation of sexuality
education, policy briefs on the socio-cultural
and gender dimensions of the epidemic and the
response, and a series of good policy and practice
booklets.
In addition, UNESCO supports research to
strengthen the evidence base. Recent examples
include research on sexuality education policies,
comprehensive sexuality education, learning needs
of infected and affected learners, and the response
of schools to the needs of most-at-risk students.
UNESCO Support for HIV and Sexuality Education
UNESCO’s work on HIV and sexuality education is supported by a multi-disciplinary Global Advisory Group, which
provides leadership, guidance and recommendations. In response to the Group’s recommendations, UNESCO has:
▪ Developed International Technical Guidance on Sexuality Education: An Evidence-informed Approach for
Schools, Teachers and Health Educators, available in English, French, Spanish, Russian, Arabic, Chinese, and
Portuguese, published in partnership with UNAIDS, UNFPA, UNICEF and WHO.
▪ Supported country adaptation and use of the Technical Guidance to strengthen educational programmes in
this area.
▪ Conducted a study on the cost and cost-effectiveness of sexuality education.
▪ Published case studies on implementation of national sexuality education programmes, Levers of Success,
available in English, French, Spanish and Portuguese.
UNESCO has strengthened its capacity to provide support at regional and country level through the appointment
of Regional AIDS Advisors in Bangkok, Moscow, Santiago and Johannesburg, and 20 National Programme
Officers (NPOs) in UNESCO field offices, ten of whom are based in East and Southern Africa.
NPOs in East and Southern Africa, West and Central Africa, and Asia-Pacific have received additional training
to enable them to identify and respond to country needs for technical support on education and HIV. Capacity
development for all staff in gender equality, HIV and sexuality education will continue to be a UNESCO priority.
Building the Capacity of UNESCO Staff
UNESCO organised a planning workshop for staff who are involved in supporting comprehensive education sector
responses to HIV and AIDS through EDUCAIDS, from 8 to 10 December 2009 in Johannesburg, South Africa.
Participants came from UNESCO offices in Eastern and Southern Africa as well as the UNESCO Regional Bureau
of Education in Africa (BREDA) in Dakar. The workshop was co-organised by UNESCO’s regional team on HIV and
AIDS in Johannesburg and the Section on HIV and AIDS at UNESCO HQ. Participants were introduced to new
planning tools including a draft Global strategic plan for promoting and supporting EDUCAIDS implementation and
an M&E framework for EDUCAIDS and were given the opportunity to comment on the tools in order to improve
them and adapt them to the regional context. Feedback highlighted the importance of this workshop in enabling
staff to improve UNESCO support for strategic and operational planning and to improve coordination of planning
for EDUCAIDS with other stakeholders. A similar workshop was organised for staff from UNESCO offices in West
and Central Africa in March 2010 in Dakar, Senegal.
An induction workshop was held for all new UNESCO staff working on HIV and AIDS in East and Southern Africa
in May 2010 in Johannesburg. The workshop focused on support for planning and implementation of a 2-year
programme funded by the OPEC Fund for International Development for supporting comprehensive education
sector responses to HIV and AIDS through EDUCAIDS in 17 countries in East and Southern Africa. It offered an
opportunity for new UNESCO staff to understand their role in advocacy, planning, coordination, M&E and resource
mobilisation for the education sector response to HIV. A similar workshop was held for NPOs in the Asia-Pacific
region in December 2010 in Bangkok. This workshop also provided an opportunity for all NPOs to share experience,
challenges and best practice on planning, resource mobilisation, advocacy, and monitoring and evaluation.
21
Working with UN partners
UNESCO is a founding cosponsor of the UN Joint Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), an innovative partnership
that involves 10 UN cosponsors.9 UNESCO’s work on HIV and AIDS will contribute towards delivering the
strategic directions identified in the UNAIDS Strategy 2011-2015 and will continue to contribute to the priority
areas in the UNAIDS Outcome Framework (see Table 1).
Table 1: UNAIDS Strategic Directions and Outcome Framework Priority Areas
Strategic Direction
Revolutionalise HIV
prevention
Outcome Framework
Priority Area
Reduce sexual transmission of
HIV
Sexual transmission of HIV
reduced by half overall
Empower young people to
protect themselves from HIV
Sexual transmission among
young people reduced by 30%
Prevent mothers dying and
babies infected with HIV
Vertical transmission of HIV
eliminated and AIDS-related
maternal deaths reduced by half
Protect people who use drugs
from becoming infected with
HIV
Catalyse the next
phase of treatment,
care and support
Goals for 2015
All new HIV infections
prevented among people who
use drugs
Prevent people living with HIV
dying from TB
Universal access to
antiretroviral therapy for people
living with HIV who are eligible
for treatment
Enhance social protection for
people affected by HIV
TB deaths among people living
with HIV reduced by half
Ensure people living with HIV
receive treatment
People living with HIV and
households affected by HIV are
addressed in all national social
protection strategies and have
access to essential care and
support
Advance human rights
and gender equality
Remove punitive laws,
policies, practices, stigma
and discrimination that block
effective responses to AIDS
Empower MSM, sex workers
and transgender people to
prevent HIV and to fully access
ART
Meet the HIV needs of women
and girls and stop sexual and
gender-based violence
Countries with punitive laws
and practices around HIV
transmission, sex work, drug
use or homosexuality reduced
by half
HIV-related restrictions on
entry, stay and residence
eliminated in half of countries
that have such restrictions
UNESCO’s Contribution
UNESCO will support efforts to
reduce sexual transmission of
HIV, in particular among young
people, MSM, sex workers
and transgender people and
people who use drugs. Specific
emphasis will be given to
empowering young people to
protect themselves from HIV.
UNESCO will support efforts
to educate and inform young
people and communities about
HIV and TB treatment and
to ensure that children and
young people receive essential
care and support, including in
educational settings.
UNESCO will support efforts to
promote legal rights and reduce
stigma and discrimination, to
promote gender equality, tackle
gender-based violence and
meet the HIV-related needs of
women and girls.
Zero tolerance for genderbased violence
HIV-specific needs of women
and girls addressed in at least
half of national HIV responses
To enhance the UN response, UNAIDS has revised the Division of Labour. Based on the comparative advantage
of cosponsors, this describes how the Joint Programme will work collectively in 15 areas to deliver results and
respond to country needs and priorities. The revised Division of Labour builds on earlier guidance on UN Joint
Programming and Joint Teams on AIDS and complements the UNAIDS Technical Support Strategy 2010-2015.
9
22
ILO, UNDP, UNESCO, UNFPA, UNHCR, UNICEF, UNODC, WFP, WHO, World Bank
Under the Division of Labour (included in full in Annex 1), UNESCO has been designated as the convening
agency for ensuring good quality education for a more effective HIV response. UNESCO is also a key partner
in a further eight areas (see Table 2).
Table 2: UNESCO’s Role in the UNAIDS Division of Labour10
Division of Labour area
Convenor(s)
Agency partners
Reduce sexual transmission of HIV
WB, UNFPA
ILO, UNDP, UNESCO, UNICEF,
WFP, WHO
Protect drug users from becoming infected with HIV and
ensure access to comprehensive HIV services for people
in prisons and other closed settings
UNODC
UNDP, UNESCO, UNICEF, WB,
WHO
Empower MSM, sex workers and transgender people to
protect themselves from HIV infection and to fully access
antiretroviral therapy
UNDP, UNFPA
UNESCO, WB, WHO
Remove punitive laws, policies, practices, stigma and
discrimination that block effective responses to AIDS
UNDP
ILO, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNFPA,
UNODC, WHO
Meet the HIV needs of women and girls and stop sexual
and gender-based violence
UNDP, UNFPA
UNESCO, UNHCR, UNICEF,
UNODC, WFP, WHO
Empower young people to protect themselves from HIV
UNICEF, UNFPA
UNESCO, UNHCR, UNODC,
WHO
Scale up HIV workplace policies and programmes and
mobilise the private sector
ILO
UNESCO, UNHCR, WHO
Ensure good quality education for a more effective HIV
response
UNESCO
ILO, UNFPA, WB
Support strategic, prioritised and costed multi-sectoral
national AIDS plans
WB
ILO, UNDP, UNESCO, WFP, WHO
UNESCO works as a UNAIDS cosponsor through regular meetings of the Cosponsor Global Coordinators and
Focal Points with the UNAIDS Secretariat and the Committee of Cosponsoring Organisations at global level,
through Regional AIDS Teams, and through UN Theme Groups and Joint Teams on AIDS at country level.
UNESCO will also continue to coordinate two key UNAIDS initiatives, namely EDUCAIDS and the UNAIDS
Inter-Agency Task Team (IATT) on Education, both of which involve collaboration with UN and other partners.
The UNAIDS Inter-Agency Task Team on Education
The UNAIDS IATT on Education aims to:
▪ Strengthen and accelerate education sector responses to HIV.
▪ Improve coordination and alignment of agency support for global and country-level actions.
▪ Strengthen the evidence base and support evidence-informed policy and programming.
▪ Promote and support good practices in the education sector related to HIV.
▪ Encourage exchange of information and materials.
▪ Build bridges between those working in education and in HIV.
The IATT has developed strategic guidance for education sector responses to HIV, a toolkit on mainstreaming
HIV in the education sector, and a series of advocacy briefing notes on teachers living with HIV, mainstreaming
HIV in education, girls’ education and HIV prevention, and HIV and AIDS education in emergencies. The IATT also
provides inputs to the EFA Fast Track Initiative and Global Monitoring Report.
10
The full Division of Labour is included in Annex 1.
23
Joint working, through the IATT and through regional
and country teams, will further contribute to efforts
to ‘Deliver as One’ in the context of wider UN reform
and of the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness, as
well as the UNAIDS Strategy 2011-2015.
UNESCO also works through inter-agency
partnerships with UNAIDS cosponsors on specific
global and regional initiatives. Recent examples
include collaboration with:
▪ UNFPA, UNICEF, WHO and the UNAIDS
Secretariat to develop International Technical
Guidance on Sexuality Education.
▪ ILO on the development of workplace policies for
the education sector.
▪ WHO on HIV and AIDS treatment education.
▪ UNICEF, WHO and the World Bank on school
health promotion including through the Focusing
Resources on Effective School Health (FRESH)
initiative.
▪ UNHCR on educational responses to HIV and
AIDS for refugees and internally displaced
persons.
▪ UNICEF and the SADC Secretariat on a review of
education sector responses.
Collaboration with UNICEF and UNFPA in East and Southern Africa
The joint UNESCO-UNICEF review of education sector responses to HIV in East and Southern Africa, conducted
in collaboration with the SADC Secretariat, developed as a result of both agencies’ membership of the HIV
Prevention Working Group of the Regional AIDS Team. It also built on earlier collaboration on the Care and Support
for Teaching and Learning Initiative, which provided a common platform for work on HIV and education, and the
Schools as Centres of Care and Support Programme.
Working together on this initiative has strengthened inter-agency collaboration at country level, streamlined
communication with national counterparts, and promoted sharing of ideas and resources and more efficient
use of human, technical and financial resources. Further collaboration is planned to address implementation
gaps identified by the review and to support HIV-positive educators and learners. UNESCO and UNICEF are also
collaborating with UNAIDS and UNFPA to encourage countries to provide comprehensive sexuality education.
UNESCO and UNICEF are also supporting the SADC Secretariat to reinvigorate the education sector response
and strengthen monitoring and evaluation in the region. In addition to the joint review of policy and strategy, and
implementation of policy and strategy, UNESCO and UNICEF conducted a rapid assessment in 2010 of monitoring
and evaluation of education sector responses to HIV and AIDS and plan to pilot HIV and education indicators.
UNESCO is an active partner in UN+ and UN Cares.
UN+ represents and provides support for UN staff
living with HIV and meets with UN decision-makers
to voice key concerns. UN+ works in partnership
with UN Cares, the UN system HIV workplace
programme, to ensure that all staff know about HIV
and are aware of their rights.
In the area of gender equality, UNESCO is an active
member of the UNAIDS Interagency Working Group
on women, girls, gender equality and HIV, and is
working with ILO, UNFPA, UNICEF, UN Women and
WHO within the framework of the United Nations
Adolescent Girls Task Force. UNESCO’s work on HIV
and AIDS will also link to UN Women, the new UN
entity for gender equality and the empowerment
24
of women, and contribute to the goals of the UN
Secretary-General’s initiative, UNiTE to End Violence
against Women.
UNESCO’s work on HIV and AIDS
will also link to UN Women, the
new UN entity for gender equality
and the empowerment of women,
and contribute to the goals of the
UN Secretary-General’s initiative,
UNiTE to End Violence against
Women.
Working with national partners
At country level, UNESCO supports national
governments, through education ministries and
other line ministries (notably health), National AIDS
Councils and Commissions and UNESCO National
Commissions. UNESCO also works with a wide
range of civil society partners, including professional
associations, academic and training institutions,
non-government organisations, networks and
organisations of people living with HIV and the
media. EDUCAIDS (see Box below) supports the
implementation of comprehensive education sector
responses.
UNESCO also works with a wide
range of civil society partners,
including professional associations,
academic and training institutions,
non-government organisations,
networks and organisations of people
living with HIV and the media
EDUCAIDS
EDUCAIDS promotes, develops and supports comprehensive education sector responses that comprise: quality
education; policy, management and systems; content, curriculum and learning materials; educator training
and support; and approaches and entry points. EDUCAIDS has developed a Framework for Action outlining the
essential components of a comprehensive education sector response, provided implementation support in more
than 80 countries, and produced guidance and resources, including practical guidelines for supporting EDUCAIDS
implementation and a series of technical briefs that provide clear guidelines to countries on a range of issues
relating to a comprehensive education sector response. An independent evaluation of EDUCAIDS in 2009 found
that progress has been made, in particular in policy development, planning, coordination, integration of HIV into
curricula for teachers and secondary school students, and care and support for learners, and that EDUCAIDS has
contributed through provision of resources, strengthening coordination and sharing best practice.
UNESCO also provides capacity-building support for
national partners. For example, the UNESCO Regional
Bureau for Education in Africa held a workshop in
Ghana in April 2009 on educational planning and
management. The workshop brought together
representatives from education ministries, faculties
of education and training centres in Anglophone
West Africa to train educational planners and
administrators to analyse the interaction between
HIV and educational planning and to develop
strategies to mitigate the impact of the epidemic on
the sector.
25
4
IMPLEMENTING
THE STRATEGY
As a specialised UN agency, UNESCO plays a key role in policy advice
and dialogue, benchmarking, monitoring and reporting, and capacity
development. UNESCO’s current biennial plan gives particular emphasis
to setting standards and building the capacity of Member States and
UNESCO’s role as a laboratory of ideas, a clearinghouse and a catalyst for
international cooperation. UNESCO will take forward the strategy for HIV
and AIDS through the following core functions.
26
UNESCO’s Core Functions
▪ Leadership and advocacy – UNESCO advocates at global, regional and national levels for political and financial
commitment to the role of education in national responses to HIV and mainstreaming of HIV within education
sector policies and plans, and for culturally appropriate and scientifically sound responses.
▪ Policy and programmatic guidance – UNESCO plays a key role in providing normative guidance and practical
tools and resources to education and other sector ministries, and to other national partners.
▪ Technical support – UNESCO provides technical assistance and capacity-building for national partners to
implement comprehensive, evidence-informed and rights-based responses. In line with the revised UNAIDS
Technical Support Strategy, UNESCO will focus on assisting countries to identify their technical support
needs, coordinating provision of technical support, and ensuring the delivery of high quality technical support.
UNESCO also builds the capacity of partners outside government, including the media, scientific institutions
and youth organisations.
▪ Strategic information – UNESCO supports research and action to improve knowledge and strengthen the
evidence base, and promotes sharing of information, good practice and lessons learned. UNESCO also supports
monitoring and evaluation of global, regional and country progress, trends and impact. UNESCO will contribute
to the UNAIDS Knowledge Management Strategy, which aims to promote coherent action across the Joint
Programme in tracking the epidemic and the response, building the evidence base, strengthening evaluation
and articulating a clear research agenda.
▪ Convening and coordination – UNESCO brings together a range of partners to ensure coherent and coordinated
action at global and country level, including through the UNAIDS IATT on Education and EDUCAIDS, and the
UNAIDS Outcome Framework and Strategy, promoting coordination between initiatives with shared agendas
and supporting global and national coordination frameworks and mechanisms.
27
Specific areas of action, for each of the
strategic priorities, are summarised below.
Build country capacity for effective and sustainable
education responses to HIV
UNESCO will:
▪ Promote evidence-informed education responses
that reflect epidemic priorities, including the critical
importance of Know Your Epidemic, Know Your
Response. UNESCO will collaborate with UNAIDS and
national partners to support the generation and use
of strategic information in policy and programming.
UNESCO will also continue to support research to
expand the evidence base.
▪ Provide technical support and capacity-building for
national partners to implement and monitor education
sector policies and strategies. Priority will be given to
implementation support in sub-Saharan Africa, which is
a global priority for UNESCO as well as the region worst
affected by the epidemic, including through joint efforts
with UNICEF and other partners to reinvigorate the
education sector response in East and Southern Africa.
▪ Support countries to implement EDUCAIDS in different
epidemic contexts, through technical support, capacitybuilding and provision of practical tools and guidelines.
More specifically, UNESCO will assist countries to
address the gap between policy and implementation,
including through support to partners that are closer
to the point of delivery, for example working with
municipalities in the 15 cities in East and Southern
Africa which account for a third of HIV prevalence and
new infections.
▪ Improve monitoring and evaluation of the progress and
impact of comprehensive education sector responses to
HIV and AIDS. Through the UNAIDS IATT on Education,
UNESCO will support the implementation of a global
progress survey on education sector engagement in
national HIV responses, focusing on implementation
bottlenecks, which will follow up on the 2004 global
readiness survey of the education sector response. The
IATT on Education, led by UNESCO, will also take forward
work on the global M&E framework for education sector
responses to HIV and AIDS, including further piloting in
2011.
Global Progress Survey on Education Sector Engagement in National HIV
Responses
In October 2010, the UNAIDS IATT on Education launched the Global Progress Survey, which will provide an indepth assessment of the appropriateness and adequacy of national education sector responses to HIV. Phase I,
completed in 2010, included background research to establish data sources and identify issues to be addressed
in Phase II and case studies of countries with different epidemiological contexts – The Bahamas, Kenya,
Swaziland and Vietnam – which documented achievements and challenges, identified barriers to education
sector engagement in national responses, implementation bottlenecks and factors affecting HIV-related learning
outcomes in formal and non-formal education settings.
Phase II, to be completed in 2011, will include a survey of at least 40 countries, which will provide the basis
for a progress report on education sector engagement in national responses. The report, which will be widely
disseminated at global and country level, will include recommendations to improve planning, implementation,
monitoring and evaluation of education sector responses to HIV and AIDS.
28
▪ Advocate for mainstreaming of HIV and AIDS into
educator sector policies, strategies and plans,
curricula and teacher training, and for a stronger role
for education within overall national AIDS responses.
UNESCO will support training using the mainstreaming
toolkit.
▪ Work with international partners and initiatives,
including UNAIDS, EDUCAIDS and the IATT, to ensure
harmonised global policies, guidelines and support for
education sector responses to HIV.
▪ Advocate for stronger emphasis in education sector
responses on HIV education for children and young
▪ Support national coordination mechanisms and
resource mobilisation, and facilitate partnerships
people who are not in school and in non-formal
education programmes.
between education ministries, other sector ministries,
civil society, the media and the private sector, for
education responses to HIV. UNESCO will work in
partnership with WHO, UNICEF and UNFPA to promote
stronger links between the education and health
sectors at country level.
▪ Support efforts to strengthen school health and health
promotion in schools, including using these as an entry
point for HIV education.
Strengthen comprehensive HIV and sexuality education
UNESCO will:
▪ Promote comprehensive HIV and sexuality education
in all epidemic settings to ensure that young people
are well informed about HIV risk behaviours and are
empowered to protect themselves from HIV infection
and other sexually transmitted infections, to avoid
unintended pregnancy, and to achieve better overall
sexual and reproductive health. While evidence
shows that comprehensive sexuality education neither
accelerates sexual debut nor increases the frequency
of sexual relations11,12, leadership and policy dialogue
are required to promote acceptance of the evidence
and to build commitment among decision-makers,
educators and parents. Where unsafe injecting drug
use, male-to-male sex and sex work are significant
modes of transmission, UNESCO will work with other
cosponsors and the Secretariat to promote integration
of these issues, and related issues of stigma and
discrimination, into HIV education for all children and
young people.
▪ Contribute to protecting young drug users from
becoming infected with HIV by supporting countries
to implement comprehensive drug prevention and HIV
education programmes for young people. UNESCO will
work closely with national authorities to help ensure
the systematic integration of information on drugs in
HIV prevention education and of HIV education in drug
prevention programmes for young people. UNESCO will
also help generate improved strategic information on
drug use by young people, in particular in educational
settings, to influence and inform policies, regulations
and interventions. UNESCO will work with UNODC to
advocate for regulations and policies that enhance
the protection of drug users from HIV transmission
and will facilitate partnerships between ministries
of health and education, teachers’ unions, parents’
associations, youth organisations and NGOs working
on drug prevention and harm reduction.
responsive, age-appropriate, culturally relevant and
rights-based HIV and sexuality education. Joint efforts
will also focus on building the capacity of education
managers, planners and curriculum specialists, and
the skills of teachers to deliver effective HIV and
sexuality education through strengthening training and
curricula.
▪ Improve young people’s access to comprehensive HIV
information and to promote behaviour change through
new technologies and communication channels
including the internet, social networking and youth
media.
▪ Monitor HIV and sexuality education coverage and
quality, and advocate for scale-up of coverage to include
all levels of the education system. This will include
assisting countries to evaluate current programmes to
ascertain the extent to which comprehensive HIV and
sexuality education is incorporated in the curriculum
at all levels and is implemented in educational settings.
▪ Strengthen the evidence base for comprehensive HIV
and sexuality education through research on costs,
effectiveness and impact, monitoring and evaluation,
and documenting and disseminating lessons learned.
▪ Promote comprehensive HIV and sexuality education
within the context of wider health promotion. UNESCO
will continue to work with UN partners on the Focusing
Resources on Effective School Health (FRESH) initiative.
UNESCO will also work with WHO to strengthen joint
efforts by the health and education sectors to promote
better health for children and young people and across
UNESCO sectors to strengthen health promotion at
all levels of society, including addressing new and
emerging health issues. UNESCO will also continue to
work in partnership with UNICEF and WFP to improve
children’s nutrition.
▪ Support implementation of comprehensive HIV and
sexuality education. UNESCO will continue, together
with its UN and other partners, to provide technical
guidance on how to develop and implement gender
11
12
UNAIDS IATT on Young People. Preventing HIV/AIDS in Young People: A
Systematic Review of the Evidence from Developing Countries
UNESCO et al. International Technical Guidance on Sexuality Education: An
Evidence-informed Approach for Schools, Teachers and Health Educators
29
Advance gender equality and protect human rights
UNESCO will:
▪ Work with UNAIDS to implement the Agenda for
Accelerated Country Action for Women, Girls and
Gender Equality and HIV. This aims to strengthen
strategic guidance and support to national partners,
assist countries to address the needs of women and
girls in national HIV and development strategies, plans,
budgets and monitoring and evaluation frameworks,
and build capacity and mobilise resources to deliver
measures to address the needs of women and girls in
the context of HIV.
▪ Work with all UNESCO sectors and country HIV
programmes to implement the UNESCO Gender
Equality Action Plan, through gender mainstreaming
in all programmes and activities and implementation
of targeted action and gender-specific programmes
to address the gender inequalities that drive the
pandemic.
▪ Ensure that all UNESCO sector initiatives promote
human rights in the context of HIV and AIDS
and contribute to efforts to reduce stigma and
discrimination. UNESCO will work with national
partners to promote equality, respect, tolerance and
dignity and to challenge harmful social and gender
norms and practices, stigma and discrimination, and
homophobia.
▪ Engage in policy dialogue and provide technical
support to ensure that education sector responses
to HIV and AIDS, including policies, strategies, plans,
training and curricula, are gender transformative and
advance gender equality.
▪ Advocate for schools to provide safe, supportive
learning environments and for education sector
responses to incorporate measures to eliminate
discrimination, abuse, sexual harassment and violence,
including gender-based violence, in educational
settings. UNESCO will work with national partners to
develop and implement codes of conduct and systems
for reporting violence and abuse.
30
▪ Document and disseminate evidence on effective
approaches and promising practices to reducing
gender inequality and gender-based violence,
including those that promote the active involvement of
men and boys.
▪ Support the rights of HIV-positive learners and
educators and the enforcement of laws and policies
that protect against stigma and discrimination in
educational settings. UNESCO will build on efforts
to date to develop and implement education sector
workplace policies and to facilitate networking and
joint action by teacher unions and organisations of
HIV-positive teachers.
▪ Encourage national partners, including education
ministries,
training
institutions,
professional
associations and networks of people living with HIV,
to ensure that HIV education takes account of the
specific needs of children and young people living
with and affected by HIV. UNESCO will continue to
monitor the needs and educational experience of HIVpositive learners. UNESCO will also continue to work
in partnership with UNICEF and others to publish the
annual Children and AIDS Stocktaking Report.
▪ Promote the role of the education sector in care and
support for children and young people living with
or affected by HIV. UNESCO will continue to support
mainstreaming of school care and support in the SADC
region, and will work with UN and national partners
to promote links with social protection programmes
that enable infected and affected children to enrol and
remain in school.
▪ Advocate for education sector responses to pay greater
attention to the needs of the most-at-risk and vulnerable
children and young people, including young drug users
and MSM, and the children of drug users and sex
workers.
Measuring Progress
UNESCO will continue to work with partners to monitor
epidemic trends, the coverage, effectiveness and quality
of programmes, and progress towards global and national
commitments and targets. Support for monitoring and
evaluation at country level will focus on building national
capacity and strengthening national systems.
UNESCO reports both within UNESCO, including to the
UNESCO Executive Board, and externally, on progress
in delivering its mandate. Monitoring and reporting on
progress with implementing UNESCO’s Strategy for HIV and
AIDS will use existing mechanisms to avoid duplication of
effort. These mechanisms include regular reporting on the
UNESCO regular programme and budget and on progress
towards the MDGs, EFA and Gender Equality Action
Plan outcomes, and reporting to UNAIDS on UNESCO’s
contribution to the UNAIDS Strategy and Outcome
Framework goals as well as on the accountabilities
defined in the Agenda for Accelerated Country Action for
Women, Girls and Gender Equality and HIV.
comprehensive sexuality education made by the countries
of Latin America and the Caribbean.
Finally, UNESCO will continue to conduct periodic
evaluations, as well as to participate in the UNAIDS
Cosponsor Evaluation Working Group (CEWG) and to
contribute to the UNAIDS Monitoring and Evaluation
Reference Group (MERG).
UNESCO currently reports to UNAIDS against the Unified
Budget and Workplan. As of 2012, this will be replaced
by the Unified Budget, Results and Accountability
Framework (UBRAF), which will enhance reporting on
Joint Programme activities and resources and more
clearly show the contributions of each cosponsor.
More specifically, as mentioned earlier, UNESCO has
worked with partners to develop a comprehensive
framework for monitoring and evaluation, which includes
global, regional and country-level indicators and will
facilitate measurement of the contribution of education
responses to the overall HIV and AIDS response at
each level. UNESCO will also monitor progress against
regional commitments, for example, commitments on
31
ANNEX 1:
THE UNAIDS DIVI S ION OF LABOUR
Division of Labour Area
32
Convenor(s)
Agency Partners
Reduce sexual transmission of HIV
WB, UNFPA
ILO, UNDP, UNESCO, UNICEF,
WFP, WHO
Prevent mothers from dying and babies from becoming
infected with HIV
WHO, UNICEF
UNFPA, WFP
Ensure that people living with HIV receive treatment
WHO
ILO, UNDP, UNHCR, UNICEF,
WFP
Prevent people living with HIV from dying of tuberculosis
WHO
ILO, UNICEF, UNODC, WFP
Protect drug users from becoming infected with HIV and
ensure access to comprehensive HIV services for people
in prisons and other closed settings
UNODC
UNDP, UNESCO, UNICEF, WB,
WHO
Empower MSM, sex workers and transgender people to
protect themselves from HIV infection and to fully access
antiretroviral therapy
UNDP, UNFPA
UNESCO, WB, WHO
Remove punitive laws, policies, practices, stigma and
discrimination that block effective responses to AIDS
UNDP
ILO, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNFPA,
UNODC, WHO
Meet the HIV needs of women and girls and stop sexual
and gender-based violence
UNDP, UNFPA
UNESCO, UNHCR, UNICEF,
UNODC, WFP, WHO
Empower young people to protect themselves from HIV
UNICEF, UNFPA
UNESCO, UNHCR, UNODC,
WHO
Enhance social protection for people affected by HIV
UNICEF, WB
ILO, UNDP, UNHCR, WFP, WHO
Address HIV in humanitarian emergencies
UNHCR, WFP
UNDP, UNFPA, UNICEF, UNODC,
WHO
Integrate food and nutrition programmes within the HIV
response
WFP
UNICEF, UNHCR, WHO
Scale up HIV workplace policies and programmes and
mobilise the private sector
ILO
UNESCO, UNHCR, WHO
Ensure good quality education for a more effective HIV
response
UNESCO
ILO, UNFPA, WB
Support strategic, prioritised and costed multi-sectoral
national AIDS plans
WB
ILO, UNDP, UNESCO, WFP, WHO
ANNEX 2:
REFERENCES
앶 Aggleton P and Thomas F (2010). Assessment of Inter-Agency Task teams (IATTs). Report of Key Findings, Recurrent
Themes and Suggested Way Forward.
앶 Dolata S and Ross K (2010). What Pupils and Teachers in Southern and East African Primary Schools know about HIV
and AIDS. Results from the SACMEQ III Project. IATT Symposium 26-28 May 2010.
앶 IIEP (2008). Responding to HIV and AIDS: The Case of a Zambian Teacher Training Institution.
앶 IIEP and IICBA (2008). The Response of Teacher Training Institutions to HIV and AIDS: A Case Study of Ethiopia.
앶 IIEP and IATT on Education (2009). Teachers and HIV and AIDS: Reviewing Achievements, Identifying Challenges.
Web Forum Report.
앶 Ministerial Declaration Preventing through Education. First meeting of Ministers of Health and Education to Stop HIV
and STI in Latin America and the Caribbean. XVII International AIDS Conference, Mexico City.
앶 SACMEQ (2010). How Successful are HIV/AIDS Prevention Education Programmes? SACMEQ Policy Issues Series,
Number 3, September 2010.
앶 SADC, UNESCO and UNICEF (2010). Colloquium on Reinvigorating Education Sector Responses to HIV and AIDS in
East and Southern Africa, 15-17 September 2010. Draft Report.
앶 UNAIDS (2010). Technical Support Strategy (Draft).
앶 UNAIDS (2010). Joint Action for Results: UNAIDS Outcome Framework 2009-2011 (Updated version).
앶 UNAIDS IATT on Education (2009). A Strategic Approach: HIV & AIDS and Education.
앶 UNAIDS IATT on Education (2008). Toolkit for Mainstreaming HIV and AIDS in the Education Sector. Guidelines for
Development Cooperation Agencies. UNAIDS.
앶 UNAIDS IATT on Education (2008). Improving the Education Response to HIV and AIDS. Lessons of Partner Efforts
in Coordination, Harmonisation, Alignment, Information Sharing and Monitoring in Jamaica, Kenya, Thailand and
Zambia.
앶 UNAIDS IATT on Education (2008). Advocacy Briefing Notes: Teachers Living with HIV; Mainstreaming HIV in
Education; Girls’ Education and HIV Prevention; HIV and AIDS Education in Emergencies.
앶 UNDG (2010). Thematic Paper on MDG 2.
앶 UNESCO (2010). UNESCO’s Short Guide to the Essential Characteristics of Effective HIV Prevention.
앶 UNESCO (2010). Report on the Independent External Evaluation of UNESCO. Executive Board Paper 185 EX/18.
앶 UNESCO (2008). Priority Gender Equality Action Plan 2008-2013.
앶 UNESCO and UNAIDS (2009). EDUCAIDS Evaluation: Key Findings, Recommendations and UNESCO’s Actions.
앶 UNESCO et al (2009). International Technical Guidance on Sexuality Education: An Evidence-informed Approach for
Schools, Teachers and Health Educators.
앶 UNESCO et al (2009). Regional Technical Consultation on International Guidelines for Sexuality Education and other
Related Documentation: Preliminary Report.
앶 UNESCO et al (2008). Supporting the Educational Needs of HIV-positive Learners: Lessons from Namibia and
Tanzania.
앶 United Nations General Assembly (2010). Report of the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Right to Education.
23 July 2010.
33
Cover:
© 2006 Anna Gerrard, Courtesy of Photoshare
Caption: Local women in Magu, Tanzania. These women have empowered themselves through working together with other women to breed organic
chickens and grow specialty mushrooms for sale at regional markets.
© UNAIDS/G.Pirozzi
© 2009 Morgan Mbabazi, Courtesy of Photoshare
Caption: Children entertain guests at Mildmay, a center for HIV-positive children in Uganda.
© UNAIDS/L. Taylor
© 2005 Jessica Scranton, Courtesy of Photoshare
Caption: A mother and child inside of their home in Rajasthan, India.
© 2006 Bethany Christian Services Iasi Romania, Courtesy of Photoshare
Caption: A young boy in Romania has his face painted.
© 2009 Enriqueta Valdez-Curiel, Courtesy of Photoshare
Caption: A girl participates in a children’s HIV/AIDS fair in rural Concepcion Chiquirichapa, Guatemala.
p.6
© UNAIDS / C.Giray
p.8
© UNESCO / Wiebke Aden
p.13
© UNESCO / M.Lansard
p.15
© UNESCO / SWANNEPHA. A Positive Speaking ambassador makes her mother proud. Swaziland.
p.25
© UNESCO / G. Li
p.26
© UNESCO/R.Manowalailao
p.27
© UNAIDS / C.Giray
p.31
© UNAIDS / O.O’Hanlon
The strategy summarises UNESCO’s role in its capacity as a specialised agency of the UN.
It provides a framework to guide the collective efforts of UNESCO at global, regional and
country levels and describes how UNESCO will contribute to the goal of Universal Access
and address current challenges in the response to HIV and AIDS. More specifically, it sets
out UNESCO’s contribution to the achievement of the goals of the UNAIDS Strategy and
Outcome Framework 2011-2015 and UNESCO’s role within the revised UNAIDS Division
of Labour. The strategy sets out clear priorities for UNESCO in the coming years. It gives greater
emphasis to HIV prevention in the context of wider health promotion and ensuring that
all girls and boys and young women and men, both in and out of formal education, have
access to comprehensive HIV education. It also prioritises support to strengthening the
implementation and monitoring of education responses and addressing the gender and
human rights issues that hinder effective responses to HIV and AIDS.
For more information on UNESCO’s work on HIV and AIDS,
visit the website: www.unesco.org/aids
or contact [email protected]